Nothing a Good Exorcism Won’t Cure

Tags

American Exceptionalism, corporate America, economy, Fox News, Glenn Beck, GOP, immigration, Joe Barton, media wackos, Michelle Bachmann, oil spill, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin

I mean really! I keep waiting patiently (THAT word again!) for the punch line. I just know it’s all gonna turn out to be one big whoppin’ joke.

I mean really. You know what I mean. It can’t be that rational people, can be this stupid, this vapidly insane can it?

The Republican party looks like a version of the Keystone Cops. Are they passing information via smoke signals on top of their BMW’s or something?

Get on the same page will ya?

I recently read a post (yesterday is recently yes?) wherein the writer mentioned that some of those fundie sites warn their readers (it’s a wonder they can read, I know) that meditation and yoga are devilishly inspired. In other words, that voice in your head tellin’ to love everyone is really the Satanic One leadin’ you astray into the nether world of  love? when what? Christians should be about war?

And Joe Barton is apologizing to BP because they were “shook down” by agreeing to pay $20 billion + for all the freakin’ damage they admittedly made. And he was but echoing what Bachmann and Haley Barber and some of the other fools in the party had already said.

But suddenly, Joe sayin’ it, well it was too much. And suddenly everybody was retracting and saying they never said it, and cutting and parsing, and pasting like video tape is still a thought in some Star Trek vision for the future.

What is most astounding in all this is that the powers that be in the party (according to Joe Scarborough, that would be Fox News), continue to think that most Rethugs are high wire walkers.

And guess what? They aren’t. Most of ’em can’t manage to keep their balance on mother earth on a beam a foot wide.

I mean, we are horrified that BP did this, and sure they should pay, but not at the hands of Obama who is black and whom we hate, so their paying is bad, unless, somehow, they pay through us, the good guys.

Try balancing on that! Oh, and surely not a soul will look at who is getting the most money from oil companies!

Turning to immigration, we got one side bemoaning that the Latinos are wreaking havoc on white Merika and destroying our way of life, while the other side says, hey you know we stand for famblies right? The way YOU define them? We define them the same. We are both against abortion in any form, hate gay icky stuff, so VOTE FOR US.

Is this demented or what?

Turning to unemployment we get the same old thing. Rethugs tell us that we must make corporations strong, that’s how a good economy runs. But runs for whom? So far it seems to run only for the obscenely wealthy. But we are for the working man, and want to create jobs, but if you don’t have one, well, we don’t want you to draw unemployment FOREVER lest you get too comfortable and grow to like it. Yeah, getting 30% of your normal wage is sure enticing!

I repeat, is this demented?

Or, frankly are these people deeply in the hands of the EVIL ONE? i am thinkin’ that just maybe they are.

It would explain all the shootin’ in the foot behavior we continue to see. I mean I expect G. Gordon Liddy to talk about Obama destroying the American standard of exceptionalism. He is a nut. He is  incredible, uncreditable, and discreditable.

Rushy Limpbaugh now, he is touted by some (no doubt possessed persons themselves) to be a leader of the party. And he says the same darn thing.  These fools are not afraid to speak aloud their private arrogance in Merika still being the last best bastion of freedom. DO YOU THINK THIS PLAYS WELL ANYWHERE BUT AMONG YOUR TROGLYDYTE MINIONS? LIKE ANYONE WHO LIVES IN ANY FOREIGN COUNTRY? ARE YOU AN IDIOT? Well, I guess I needn’t have said that. That is obvious.

It’s as obvious as Sarah (that woman is an idiot) offering to help Obama out with all her expertise with oil companies. Miss quitter yeah, oh do enlighten us with your wisdoms little lady. Give us some of that advicey stuff  you’re so good at missy.

It’s as obvious as Steven King telling us that Obama just has the predisposition to choose blacks over whites. And that he was profiled by a cab driver who saw him in a suit and figured he wanted a ride. Nothing bad about that stuff. Is your head spinnin’ fast enough yet?

Oh and Beck, let us not forget the Bonkers Boy. As someone else said, he has this belief that he can write two things on a blackboard and draw an arrow between then, and voila’, he has made a connection. Squirrelly stuff here. Sane people just look on dumbfoundedly.

Seriously, you gotta try Glenn once. I mean it will just make yuou sit with your eyes bugged out and your jaw opened wider than you thought possible as he weaves a web of intrigue and conspiracy fit for any inmate in any asylum in the US of AmERiCa. When did media become so rich they could afford such utter whhhaaaaa? to be perpetrated upon the public?

It’s like. Think of the most idiotic commercial you have ever seen. Plenty to choose from. Now think. Some body, or worse yet, bodies sat in a room with suits on, and were paid mucho buckeroos, and sipped coffee, and looked out upon a fine business skyline, and nodded mind you. Yes nodded ASSENT to paying millions to hopefully sell more of their product via this ad. Blows you away doesn’t it?

Now think of the tens of millions of so-called human beings who actually voted into office, or turn on their tubes every day to witness the words falling out of the mouths of these IDIOTS.

Now you see my point. It’s possession I tell you. Has to be. A good nation wide exorcism is in order. Do it. And do it quickly, for it may soon be too late.

What’s Up? 06/18/10

Tags

BP, education, empathy, environment, evolution, God, Jewish history, Joe Barton, medicine, Obama, oil spill, Reagan, Sarah Palin, Sharron Angle, wingnuttery

I awoke to day two of sunshine! Well, it was a shock of course, and I don’t want you to get too excited, for the forecast (I know, why bother?) is not good.

Decidedly not good. The heavens are scheduled to spew! later today, and perhaps dangerously so.

I’m trying to be stoic and not spew here.

So, hopefully there is a thing or two out there that we can find that will enlighten our souls and raise us all to a higher plane of contemplation. Yep.

Science takes a look at figuring out why we like what we like. It’s a long, but thoughtful review in part of Paul Bloom’s book, How Pleasure Works.

Emory University studies chimpanzees to help learn when and how humans developed the valued empathy behavior. These nearest cousins of ours regularly sympathize and comfort members who have been victimized by aggression from others.  

Ever since South Carolina was placed on the terminally stupid state list, well we expect about anything. Senator DeMint, (the one running against the fake Democrat Greene, who barely knows that he lives in South Carolina), is helping out pal Sharron Angle ( the uber nut case running as an uber teabagger in Utah against Harry Reid), by getting the uber crazy right wing American Vision (who wants Merika governed by the bible as they interpret it), to help raise funds for said Angle’s campaign. Crazy is as crazy does.

Everybody knows that education in this country is pure crap. D-Cap via BMT makes a good case that it went off the trolley with the Reagan administration (you know the ONLY freakin’ Rethug administration in modern history that they can cling to [and they do] as something to tout?). He makes a good argument. Read Bob Bennett is a jackass.

Idiocy rules in Rethunglian land as we know. Butthead Joe Barton, (R-TX) saw fit to apologize to BP for the terrible treatment they had received at the hands of the Obama administration. Guess Joe figures the oil won’t come to Texas and that his constituency are unlike the rest of the Gulf residents who patently dispise the company. Par for the course since so many Rethuglicans are back to drill baby drill rhetoric. No shame and no brains. I simply cannot wait to see what kinds of money Barton gets from oil interests. Oops, gee. what a surprise. Turns out Barton gets more money from the oil industry THAN ANY OTHER HOUSE MEMBER. Read it!

Andrew Sullivan wrote a good piece on Obama and what he has done. Blame the media for focusing usually on the wrong stuff, and the progressives wanting too much, and the right just crying non-stop, Sullivan argues that Obama has and is taking the right tone and tack. See what you think.

For the first time, a significant Jewish history site, centering on Eastern Europe,  has been created. It is supposed to be friendly to both the casual reader and the reseacher and student alike. Take a look.

A commentor left a lovely link to a great article on Chance, Choice and God. A thoughtful post.

For chuckles, read Liberals Hate Palin Because She’s  Beautiful. The writer seriously claims that this is behind the media’s and general populations dislike of  the Palinator (that woman is an idiot). It’s kinda sad to think that conservative thinking is so shallow, and if you don’t believe me, read to the end and see that the author just wants to paint as “ugly” all liberal women. Dude you are so superficial it’s pathetic.

Best not to miss D-Caps great parody of our Sarah (that woman is an idiot) gettin’ in touch with the Prez with advice on how to handle the oil spill. Pricelessly hilarious as always.

hope you find sumpin’ to read here! lol…

Our Collective Responsibility

Tags

British Petroeum, environment, gulf coast, Marlon Brando, morality, Mutiny on the Bounty, oil spill, social issues, Tony Hayward

Last night the Contrarian and I watched the 1962 version of Mutiny on the Bounty. No, we are not going to discuss the relative merits of this version versus the 1935 version (actually there were two others that preceded them both), nor who was better, Gable or Brando.

It raises an interesting point. At why point in time are we compelled to step forward and address wrongs before we become co-responsible for the harms being done?

In the movie, Fletcher Christian is faced with example after example of  Bligh’s unfair treatment of the sailors in his keeping. He is harsh and unrelenting in his desire to achieve results–often exhibiting a clear willingness to sacrifice his crew in order to gain approval of his naval superiors back home.

Several men are viciously treated and more than one dies, before Christian is moved to step in, thereby sacrificing his own career and possible life to stop Bligh’s excesses. Perhaps Christian was slowed by his realization that indeed he would have to give up  his life in England. It is undoubtedly true that had the consequences to himself been less, he most likely would have acted sooner.

Is this a moral standard however or only a practical one? Can we justify our delay because of the relative cost to ourselves? Surely, at least in the movie, others were calling for Christian to step in sooner than he did. They all, perhaps had less to lose, it is not certain. All faced hanging if convicted of mutiny, which they surely were guilty of. Some of the men went with Bligh, on the excuse that they had family at home–the stakes were too high in their estimation for them to act morally here.

I raise the issue, because we are faced with a calamity of unprecedented proportions in the Gulf.

Our anger is unbounded at this point, unless of course you are a Republican, being bankrolled by big oil. Then of course you listen to Rush Limbaugh who tells us that the ocean will clean itself. No biggie.

The rest of us, as I said, are appalled. We are sickened to death of pictures of birds coated with oil so thick the cannot even walk. We turn away in disgust and heartbreak. We shake our fist at the CEO Tony Hayward at his insipid remarks about “wanting his life back” and then spending millions to do another “don’t hate BP because we make millions,” commercial.

Yet, I wonder, is part of our horror, part of our revulsion, part of our pain, the realization that we bear responsibility here? We all talk a great game, we all nod about the rape of the environment, we all agree that we need cleaner energy, but we are all too reluctant to give up much to achieve it.

Perhaps I speak for myself, but I think not. If it were only my selfish “forgetting”  my reusable cotton shopping bags, if it were only my sometimes use of too much plastic in my life, then we wouldn’t be talking about a Gulf catastrophe. No, sadly, I am not alone.

I do my bit, but it’s small to be sure. We burn trash, we don’t use bottled water, we try to remember to take the shopping bags with us. We try to avoid prepackaged nonsense. We try to cut down on driving and other energy expenditures, but we only do it half-assed most of the time. It’s just time consuming and annoying a lot of the time, and it’s often–oops, I’ll do better next time.

And this is where it has gotten us. We have, a goodly number of us, railed at offshore drilling, but we’ve not made it a battle to engage in. I suppose we can’t be totally condemned. After all, there are a thousand causes from Alzheimer’s to zoological extinctions that we can put our time and money into. No one can address but a small handful at best.

But, saying all that, we cannot absolve ourselves from the responsibility. It is still ours. We knowingly allowed these greedy bastards to continue, because we had other concerns both public and private. That is why we cringe at the pictures so violently. That is why our eyes water and we turn our gaze away from the creatures whose lives have for no reason they can discern turned upside down. Life is mean and short, and the innocent very often get the worst of it.

That perhaps is our greatest anger. That the first tier of guilty will suffer not one whit. Tony Hayward and all the rest of them, will simply move their summer tropical paradises to some other part of the globe untainted by oil sludge. They can afford to.

Those whose livelihoods, limited as they were, focused on the Gulf, are done for perhaps decades to come. The animals and birds and fish who die, well, they were unknown, unnamed, and will pass mostly unnoticed. Like the huge epic extinctions of bygone times, they will mark a time only. A time  reflected in history books (unless Texas manages to vacuum this story as well).

I have no answers. But you are so used to that. How to organize and stop all this wretched excess bought at the cost of the poor, the working poor, the environment? I’d love an answer. I can only feed the birds that live in the meadow, and pet my dogs and caress my cats, and try to be especially kind to them, knowing they are the lucky few.

What say you?

What’s Up? 06/03/10

Tags

Dick Cheney, faith, fundamentalists, gay rights, Halliburton, intelligence, Iowa, mind-body issues, oil spill, psychology, religion, same-sex marriage, Ted Haggard, wealth

Sooo, it’s Thursday, and you know what that means! Oh, maybe you don’t? Well, it means the weekend is only a coupla days away. That used to be the only thing I frankly lived for.

Now, not so much. Being REtired ( not more tired mind ya) but, as in not working a formal gig meaning job, I don’t pay as much attention to the humpy Wednesday, maudlin Monday kinda thing any more. But it’s hard to shake, cuz the rest of the world seems to, so well, I succumb to public pressure.

Which all means nothing whatsoever. But as usual, I aim to dazzle you with my wordy abilities.

Saying that, hey, ever wondered where all the smart people are? Other that moi and Contrarian here, well, things are probably a little intellectually bereft here in the hinterlands of northern Linn county Iowa. Not to cast aspersions upon my fellow Iowans or nuttin’ . I am not a caster, having no rod and reel, nor a bean to save my soul. Should those things work at saving one’s soul that is. Anyway, The Atlantic has a kinda weird story and charts about where all the smart people live. Take a look.

Oh I got a new word for ya from Dr. McGrath over at Exploring our Matrix. It’s sarchasm. Meaning those who are unable to grasp the sarcasm of what you said. I thought it was a good one. He had a couple of others. It was one of yesterday’s posts I believe. He’s a multiple poster, which might be sexually deviant, or maybe just an addiction. I don’t know for sure.

Apparently while I was a sleepin’ the dang old fundies have been at it again, here in I-O-WA. It seems 834 “pastors” of “churches” in Iowa have sent letters to all candidates informing them of hellfire and damnation opposition, should they not push for a constitutional amendment redefining marriage as between only a man and a woman. It will require that to pass muster before the Iowa Supreme Court. Ain’t these idiots got anything better to do? Like feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and such? This comes by way of Rightwing Watch.

Well, dintcha just know he would? Disgraced fundie gay blade, Ted Haggard and his stand by yer man wifey, are planning on starting their own church. I don’t think the New Life Church of which he was the head honcho before the, err, scandal, wanted him back. So, because of public demand he is baaakk. Shall we all say a prayer for the poor souls who will become his newest victims?

Speaking of fraudulent stuff (we were weren’t we?) the Bible and Interpretation has a great article on some folks penchant for stuff that “proves” faith. We are talking about shrouds and pieces of the cross, and other such stuff. If you are religiousy, you might enjoy it.

If you want some heavy duty reading about mind-body issues–how does our brain relate to our our mind–then read a thoughtful post from Robert Lawrence Kuhn, at Science and Religion Today. It’s fascinating if a bit complicated to untangle. Best I can discern is that there is no real consensus among the experts. Are we reproducible or is there something about us that is, well, not biological?

It’s long been my contention that having the ability to acquire most anything, leaves one with little enjoyment of much of any commodity so obtained. (If you can afford a 100 cashmere sweaters, how much do you enjoy wearing or looking at one of yours?) Psychology Today reports on some findings. (Hint: I’m sorta vindicated, sorta.)

Anybody notice? That old Dick “THE DICK” Cheney has been silent during this BP disaster? Mr. Bigmouth warning us how Obama was destroying Merika for the whitey man, has shut his pie hole tight as of late. I shouldn’t wonder since, Halliburton is busy lining the coffers of all those Rethugs up for election who just happen to sit on committees that will be investigating the oil spew. These asswipes have NO shame. Did I just manage to waste time stating the obvious? Sure did.

That’s it for today. A mind is a terrible thing to waste. Use yours today!

What’s Up? 06/02/10

Tags

abortion rights, astronomy, big bang, Catholicism, DODT, feminism, Israel, lifestyles, Michaelangelo, Middle East, mind-body, oil spill, Palestine, right wing nuttery, Sarah Palin, Sistene Chapel, tolerance, What's Up? news

It’s another gorgeous day in the meadow. Alas I remain indoors, afraid to step out and be assaulted by the bug that bites me and leaves me itching for a week.

In ten years I’ve never been able to see a bug on my skin, and thereafter find that as the site of intense itching. I assume it is a mosquito, but never feel any bite from the critter and thus have no clue. But  a full week of itching ensues.

I’ve tried every manner of itch cream and calomine lotion I can find. Nothing works but temporarily. I am fine, and then brush against it and it flares up again. I cannot locate my OFF and so am indoors until I can get to the store tomorrow. Then it’s full coverage from head to foot for all of June. By July it seems whatever it is moves on.

Feeling sorry for me? Good! That makes me feel better.

***

A good editorial from the NYTimes on Sister Margaret McBride, excommunicated for signing off on an abortion in Phoenix. All those pedophile priests of course were NEVER excommunicated.

I confess to not knowing as much as I should about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This set of essays I think help us to work our way through a complicated history. Thanks of course to 3quarksdaily. (Do you think I’m over using this site or what?)

Just me, but since BP has asked for any suggestions in plugging that leak? I’d skip the tennis balls and tires, and send down some Rethugs ( I have a whole list I could give them of unnecessary air-users up top here). All that hot air might do the trick ya know. Just sayin’. It’s the patriotic thing to do doncha think? And the GOP prides itself on being patriotic.

Scientific American has a fascinating post on Michaelangelo and the Sistene Chapel. Seems that the great artist and renaissance man was quite the anatomist, and left some fine illustrations buried in the ceiling painting. Such work is now being described by Ian Suk and Raphael Tamargo, both experts in the field of neuroanatomy from Johns Hopkins. Some interesting speculation as to what it all means.

Mystical Seeker has some valuable insights into tolerance in our world today. It never fails to thrill me to see that bloggers read one another, read other articles, and new ideas sprout. Some thoughtful ideas here.

Who doesn’t believe in the big bang? Oh, your usual suspects, southern Republicans. What is it about these people that they are so fearful of reality?

Something like 70-80% of all Americans support repeal of DODT in the military. The right has raised new arguments every day it seems. First, it would increase gay rape, then we have to worry about tainted “gay blood,” then it would destroy military chaplains “rights” but the newest one is the best–It will enrage Muslims who will try to kill more of us. Right Wing Watch has to story.

If you like your news tart and saucy, then you better try out Black Magpie Theory. Brought to us by OKJimm!

Is Sarah Palin entitled to call herself a feminist? Do words mean anything? A terrific must read post at Jezebel!

If you need an attitude adjustment, and we all do from time to time, Atticus at StatesofMindz, has 21 “If’s” you might want to think about.

Hope you find a thing or two that strikes your fancy here.

Kicking the Can

Tags

atheist blogging, blogging, financial meltdown, gay marriage, Greece, immigration reform, Iowa, Jindal, John McCain, Lousiana, Merlin Bartz, Obama, oil spill, teabaggers

It’s Friday (shivery all over if you are a workin’ stiff, but I’m not so it’s no big deal), and typically for reasons that are beyond comprehension, tons of my readers are BUSY. Like getting ready for the barbecue tonight, or the concert, or well, any number of THINGS. So readership always goes down. And stays down until Monday rolls around.

Sometimes I figure, I’m read by mostly bored automatons sitting in cubicles across Merika, hoping the boss don’t waltz by while they are surfin’.

Anyway, it means it’s a good day to just dump all the odds and ends cramping my head space. Which is not to say that what follows isn’t R E A D A B L E , cuz it most certainly is. But I’m a tad lazy, and its rainy, and more importantly COLD and like your average amphibian, I’m  S L O W.
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Okay, so the teabaggers are all in a huff cuz they claim that Obama has violated his place nice directive by using the term “teabagger” which everyone now knows refers to some sexual behavior that we will not even describe here, let alone picture! But that’s a lie. Turns out the silly teabaggers themselves actually coined the phrase.

Yep, before, undoubtedly they knew the actual meaning. They had placards that said “tea bag the Dems before they tea bag you.” Enough said, move on please.

***

Jindal, as in Louisiana Jindal is demanding federal funds to war against the oil coming ashore. I don’t mind that, but wasn’t he the same fella that was harping that he was not gonna take stimulus money because he was not in favor of the feds messin’ in his state? Seems a lot of Repooplicans suffer from dry rot of the brain in not REMEMBERING what they said last week! Just sayin’.

***

Got our own brand of wacko wizardry here in Iowa. Some nut, Merlin Bartz (R-Grafton, IA) and state senator is calling for a law banning gay married couples from being declared “families” for purposes of getting a tent site at state camp grounds. Don’t that beat all? He says that the gay marriage ruling is gonna effect all kinds of terrible changes in Iowa. And course, he intends to manufacture just as many of them as he can.

***

I know that I have barely had this “theme” up a month, but I’m changing it again. WordPress has gone bonkers on making new themes, like four in the last two weeks, and I just fell in love with one. So, you will be seeing it sometime today, or so. Lots of little tweaking to do, and I love that sort of thing when I have the time. I spend more time with the theme than you do, so I get bored with it faster.

***

I read a couple of days ago that Obama had indicated that he wanted to open immigration reform before the end of this year. It’s gonna be a sticky wicket for both parties, but more so for the Restuplicans. I have a different take. Now, McCain lost the election and Obama trusted I suppose that the Mav would return to his senses and be a Mav again. Not so, the crotchety old fart decided to moan and groan forever, and has become a farcical right wing nut case in an attempt to hold onto his smelly seat.

So, I figure, Obama thinks, what a way to pay back old John. This will hurt the old geezer as much as possible. Something like, “John, how bout you resurrect your fine bill you wanted to introduce back before the election?” That should get the elder unprincipled one to just about choke on his spittle. Yeah, I’m likin’ the scenario a lot.

***

Plenty of folks would agree that the beginning of Western Civilization started in Greece. Funny if it all ended there too. Just sayin’.

***

Oh I’ve been having a private little war with John Loftus over at Debunking Christianity. John doesn’t post my comments, which are usually critical of his manner, claiming they aren’t “on point” with the post. That’s a crock, but I really can’t recommend his blog any longer. He’s spends about 90 percent of his blogging time,  touting  a book he edited (and wrote a couple of chapters in), and vilifying unfavorable reviews, (one of which he took down, after calling the reviewer an idiot and worse) all the while whining for his followers to tell him he’s really right. Take a break from blogging John, and work on those self-esteem issues a bit why doncha?

Which all raises a point about atheist bloggers in general, but that’s another post at some time when I can bother with their blather. Not all mind you, some are actually very good and raise some good points, but most are just pretenders. They attack all of Christianity, when their only real target is the fundie.

***

nuf said.

Curiosity Didn’t Just Kill the Cat

Tags

brain maturity, Dick Cheney, empathy, evolution, human development, immigration, oil spill

I’ve been wondering lately if our human curiosity will be the end of us as well. That is, assuming, that the above adage is indeed correct. And since it’s had a long play in the American lexicon of sayings, undoubtedly it is true.

I figure that at best, it’s the creator of all the crazies that inhabit planet earth these days. They seem to be everywhere, in fact you can call it an infestation without any qualms that you are overstating it. I mean when folks get down to offering chickens to their doctor in payment as a SYSTEM alternative to health care reform, you gotta know, we are in deep cow poop.

We are just way out in front of ourselves here. We apparently have a part of the brain that works super good at figuring out stuff. We can build it bigger, higher, deeper, and purtier. We can have these tube things that truck information everywhere at lightening speed, and make everyone your neighbor (wouldn’t Mr. Rogers be proud!). We can make food out of cardboard, and devise all manner of idiotic play toys that we must have to hear music in the forest and watch the Knesset in session while sailing off the coast of Australia. We know too much, and we know very little.

But this other part of the brain, why it barely has moved forward over the eons of time. We are only slightly less willing to kill each other at a moment’s notice for all manner of imagined wrongs and slights. We’re even willing to do it preemptively if pushed.

We smugly sip high end designer beers on the patio in the evening, nodding sagely as our neighbor points out that those illegals are just a darn bunch of lazy so and so’s who want to come up here and steal the good life out from under us.

We haven’t the time to actually read books any more, but we sure can get a synopsis of all we need to know from our favorite media outlet. Then we can spout our new found expertise at the next luncheon while eating faux chicken glop, and pretending feigned concern for those folks in Tennessee or the Gulf Coast, facing their Armageddons even as we swallow.

We elect a president and no sooner than it takes to try out that new hair color at the salon, we are ready to lay blame for everything under the sun at his doorstep. Mostly cuz we are livin’ on the moment, and each moment is well, a long time, and we gotta get on with it don’t we? I mean, there is soccer practice, and stopping at the farmer’s market (doin’ our part for  the environment), and picking up the movie for tonight, and then, awww heck, who has time to learn any facts about immigration?

Lip service we give to it all. We haven’t got time, we haven’t got patience, we haven’t got the emotional care to even CARE any more. We just want it all to stop, we wanna get off, we want all we got, and maybe a good deal more, but we want all the crap problems to go AWAY. We want Little House on the Prairie, with the SUV and the IPad.

Can’t somebody, somebody we can trust, just give us a one-page condensation of the day? They are all yelling in my ear, all competing and telling me only they can save me. I hear drill baby drill, overcome by spill baby spill, and people are dying both brown and white as the snow at the border, and it’s SOMEBODY’s fault! Not mine, no not mine. I’m just weeding the flowers and trying to figure out what to make for dinner for cryin’ out loud.

Sorry folks, our brain is one-sided, one side unable to keep up with the other. That’s what I’m a thinking. We just left that cave a few thousand years too early. Something about that woman wanting a bigger cave? Or that man wanting a more varied diet? Either way, they just let their hands outstrip their ability to funnel all that information. We forgot us in the pursuit of I.

Just so you know I’m not insane, the following will help you, I hope synthesize a bit of the news this day:

These posts seemed worth reading in regards to the issue of immigration today:

Obama Hedges on Immigration by Michael Tomasky

You Got to Chill ‘cuz They are Strictly Business, by Jamelle Bouie

The Easy Call, the So-Called Search, by Dara Lind

And on the Oil spill and who is responsible:

Challenging Cheney, by Steven Benen

Oil Spill: Cheney Did It, by Joe Klein

BP Deepwater Horizon Well. . .  by Heather

And if after all that, your head is a swirl with more than you can process, I invite you to take some time and relax with:

5 Essential Zen Habits for Balanced Living, by Anastasiya Goers

Happy sanity!